Since I traded my 350z in on a RX-8, I would like to share a comparison. The reason I went to an Eight was due to needing rear seats. That being said the RX-8 in considered my many to be in the same class as the Z. Here are my impressions.

2003 Nissan 350Z



The 350Z is a very well rounded sports car with a ton of amnesties. For the money you just can’t beat the very reliable and powerful V6 engine.

Pros
· Style – A style of a car is subjective. However, the Z is not bad to look at. From the Angler lines of the lights to the fast back styling the Z has a pretty face. Not mention a very muscular stance.
· Power – The car has the torque to pin you to the seat, even in the AT model that I owned.
· Reliability – The Z hosts a very reliable motor that was pretty good on gas.
· Sound – The engine produced very slick sound that could be heard whenever you pressed the gas pedal.

Cons
· No room – The car had no space what so ever, not even a glove box. The only storage it does have is behind the seats, which is a total pain the butt. Since there was a rear stabilizer bar in the back you could not store anything in the hatch area.
· Interior – The interior is cheap and rattled like a marble in a can. Not mention the ergonomics are not right. I found myself having to adjust the seat all the time and was never able to get a comfortable driving position.
· Stock wheels – The stock “wagon” wheels are horrid. This was improved in later models but for the 2003, they are Fugly.
· Parts – They are SO expensive. You had to replace anything it cost you an arm and a leg.
· Performance – The car had the power, I can’t lie about that. However, it is a heavy car and you could tell. Let me say that I got my butt handed to me at Auto-X events.

Final thoughts - The 350z was a great car to own. It is fun to drive and is worth every penny, for a single guy with no children I mean.

2004 RX-8 non-GT



The Mazda Rx-8 was never a car I really looked at till I needed back seats. I looked very hard a G35 since owning a Z already. The Eight eventually won out. I do not have to go into at much detail since I’m on a RX-8 site writing this.

Pros
· Back seat – The back seat with the suicide doors are what sold me to the car. They look neat and there is room for an adult to sit in.
· Rotary - The Rotary engine is just a cool feat of engineering. I like the fact it’s not in many cars. It makes it special. I’m gear head and keeping of the oil and maintain the Eight is not a problem for me. Heck I even think its fun. The 9K redline is not bad either.
· Style – Should I say more?
· Interior – This was a big thing for me since The Z did not fit well with me. The ergonomics are spot on. I have no problem driving the car for a long period of time.

Cons
· Reliability – Honestly the threads on this site scare me to death. I still have the original motor with 66,000 miles. The compression is good but I have my fingers crossed. I cannot afford a new motor. Good thing I got an extended warranty.
· AC - The air conditioner on my Eight does not seem to keep up with the 100+ temp we have been having lately. Maybe I need to take it on for a service. As for now it runs full blast just keep it the inside from melting. While I drive it.
· Headlamps – The headlamps have been polished and cleaned twice and it still looks foggy or hazy. I looked into getting a set and even the non-HID versions are expensive.
· Gas mileage – The gas mileage is WAY worse than the Z. I knew that going into it so it’s no big deal. I just thought it should be added as a sub tractor.

Well, there you have it. All in all I’m glad I purchased an Eight and looking forward to many, many days of redlined driving. I’m also looking forward to an Auto-X and I’m glad I have a 6 Speed again.

~EightCostsMoney

 

Wow, excellent write up. I actually considered a Z as well. Glad I went with the 8, and damn I don't regret it, even with the **** poor mpg lol Welcome to the club man!

 

For your A/C problem run it on number 2 and it should work fine. I noticed mine would be less cold on 4 than on 2. You may also have a problem with it, mine works great on 100+ degree days.

 

I'm goig to try the AC reset this afternoon and I hope that takes care of it.

 

You forgot to mention that the Z33 isn't equiped with the TCS.

 

Regarding the headlamps - there may be buildup on the inside of the lens, not the outside.
I recently had to bake the headlamps (to pry apart the housings) on my Speed6 to clean out the inside (it had about 55k on the odo). It was caked with 'stuff'. I had to use quite a bit of isopropyl alcohol to get it clean.

It's not hard to do at all - just time commitment.

 

To help with the reliability, monitor your coils and use 5w-30 or thicker viscosity motor oil. I personally use 5w-30 in the winter and 10w-30(40) in the summer.
I also premix, but this is a debatable topic.

Check out our 100k club members (there's a thread by that topic). They may alleviate your fears somewhat.

 

Congrats and nice write-up.

 

Like mentioned in several publications...the A/C in the Rx8 is weak. In Arizona it plain sucks. At red lights I have to pedal up the idle to 1500RPM so the cool keeps coming.

Nothing with yours is wrong...save your dollars.

 

nice write up.

 

Also try out this DIY for the AC. Tends to help a bit in hot location.

https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.php?t=42322.html

 

Can you send me a PM of the procedure to remove and clean the inside of the lenses.

I tried to do the AC reset but it is not working. I held the buttons and turned the key to ACC for or 3 seconds and to the on postion for 3 seconds. I can't get the lights to flash.

 

Thanks for sharing, this is a nice even handed comparison.

 

What about the insurance? I'm sured you saved some with the rx8? I've heard Z's are very expensive to insure

 

You really don't need to fear reliability. If you care for her properly she will last. Before my 8 was totalled I passed a compression test at 80K miles with numbers that rivaled a new motor. That was on coils/wires that were around 65K miles, and plugs that had 50K on them. I was using mostly castrol gtx 10w-30 oil. Changing it every 25K miles. Running on the track every 6 weeks minimum. Everyone will experience something different with the 8s but don't fear reliability. For every one engine thats replaced you have 10 cars on the road that are traded in well over 100K miles. I have a co worker still driving an 04 6port 6speed with 143K miles on it. I work on it from time to time, but its driving just fine. All we did was replace the water pump, thermostat, oil lines, brake lines, and clutch line. (not including obvious things like tires/brakes). Its running just fine, starts right up and has no problems.

Just take care of her, and she will take care of you.

 

Nope, it did not change much at all. I have low insurance due to a good driving record and I have been with State Farm for nearly 17 years.

 

You don't need to take apart the lenses to try and clean them, first try what I did!

Go to Walmart and purchase the Turtle Wax headlight lens restorer. It's a $10 fix and it worked like I would have never imagined. Below you can see my before and after pics.

The good thing about this product is that you should take before and after pictures because on the box, Turtle Wax offers a money back guarantee with pictures if you are not satisfied!

 

I can warm up, idle while I throw trash and get mail, go to the store at 35 mph (lights-stop and go), and when I get home after that 5 mile round trip my scan guage says 19.6 mpg for the day warm up and all. I've gotten 27.1 @75 on a full tank several times.

I save the bad mileAGE for the track! (maybe 8-10mpg)

 

Quite the improvement.

 

Thanks for comparing the two. I bought the rx8 because of the rear seats too (i have 2 kids, that's why). If the Nissan Z has a back seat, then my choice would be the Nissan Z. Anyway, when i first saw the rx8, i fell in love and this car is unique because of the rotary engine, different like no other car to me.

 

TCS and DSC isnt really that big of a deal, I love driving my rx8 and its missing both of those. :P

 

Not totally sure I buy this

 

Yeah I am skeptic on that also. The highest I've gotten is about 23 mpg from Orlando to Daytona and back all highway going about 75-80.

 

True, I do turn the DSC off every time I drive the car.

 

I would love to try driving a rx8 with dsc or tcs, maybe I am missing out.